The Living Room and the services they offer is a remarkable place helping so many people in the community. Not only does it provide assistance for older adults with dementia challenges, but it helps provide respite for caregivers. This new grant will help reduce costs for Adult Day Services at the Living Room and in turn help more low-income and working families. Remember the Friendship Centers' tag line, "People Helping People." This grant will do just that - help more members of the community and be more accessible.

Thanks to a $9,203 grant provided by the Verna L. Grauel Fund, the Alzheimer’s Lifeliners Field of Interest Fund and the Martin and Rhoda Safer Memorial Fund of the Community Foundation of Sarasota County, the Friendship Centers’ “Sponsor a Senior” program will provide assistance with the cost of adult day services in the Living Room for older adults with Alzheimer’s or other dementias.“This generous grant will help offset up to 50% of the hourly rate for our Living Room Adult Day Services, really helping low-income and working families. Although we feel our rates are quite reasonable for many families in our community, this makes access to support more accessible for everyone,” said Senior Vice President Erin McLeod.A caregiver may be a spouse, adult child or grandchild providing care for a loved one who is typically in need of supervision due to compromised functions from advancing Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. The Living Room Adult Day Services provide a safe, welcoming environment, increased social opportunities and assistance with personal care and other daily living activities.“How wonderful of the Community Foundation of Sarasota County for recognizing this need and for helping families access daytime support at our Living Room through Sponsor a Senior,” McLeod said.The Community Foundation of Sarasota County is a public charity founded in 1979 by the Southwest Florida Estate Planning Council as a resource for caring individuals and the causes they support, enabling them to make a charitable impact on the community. With assets of over $273 million in more than 1,200 charitable funds, the Community Foundation awarded grants and scholarships totaling more than $19.3 million dollars this past year in the areas of education, health and human services, the arts, animal welfare, and the environment. Since its founding, more than $145 million has been invested back into the community through grants and scholarships.

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